Verification

Federal Verification of FAFSA Information

Many financial aid applicants will be required to verify the information that is reported on the FAFSA/Renewal FAFSA completed each year. Financial data, such as income, and non-financial data, such as family size and dependency status, will be verified. If you are selected for Verification by the Federal government, you will have to submit the following to the Office of Financial Aid:

• 2023-2024 Federal Verification worksheet;
• Parent(s)/Student tax filer income information either by the IRS Data Retrieval Process, 2021 IRS Federal Tax Return Transcript or a signed and dated copy of the 2021 Federal Tax Return and all applicable schedules;
• If the Parent(s) did not file a Federal tax return, an IRS Verification of Non-filing letter confirming their  non-tax filing status will be required for each parent on the FAFSA along with proof of income earned such as 2021 W-2's;
• Parent(s)/Student's signed 2021 Amended Federal Tax Return IRS Form 1040X (if applicable);
• Parent(s)/Student's signed and dated copy of pages 1 & 2 of their 2021 Federal tax return for their untaxed Pension/IRA distribution;
• Identity/Statement of Educational Purpose - Certain applicants will be required to verify their identity and resubmit a Statement of Educational Purpose, as was originally provided as part of the FAFSA submission, if requested.

To request an IRS Tax Return Transcript please visit www.irs.gov and select "Get Your Tax Record" followed by either “Get Transcript Online,” OR “Get Transcript by Mail” or use Form 4506-T or call 1-800-908-9946.

FAFSA applicants who are selected for Verification must complete this process in order to move their Federal financial aid towards their direct charges. The FAFSA Verification process takes a minimum of four to six weeks, so it is highly recommended that students file their FAFSA early and turn in all requested Verification paperwork as soon as possible.

Updating FAFSA Through The Mandated IRS Data Retrieval Process

All FAFSA on the web applicants, and the parents of dependent applicants, who indicate that they have filed their Federal tax returns prior to completing their FAFSA and who are otherwise eligible will be directed to use the FAFSA-IRS Data Retrieval process to complete their FAFSA more easily and accurately. Applicants who choose not to use this process, or who retrieve IRS data but subsequently change it on their FAFSA, will be informed that they will be subject to being selected for the FAFSA Verification process and will be required to support their reported FAFSA data with information obtained directly from the IRS. We strongly encourage families to file their initial FAFSA as soon after October 1.